


The Morning After

by LogicGunn



Series: The Long Dark [6]
Category: Stargate Atlantis, The Long Dark (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - The Long Dark Fusion, Fluff, M/M, Post-Apocalyptic, Rodney's POV, Survival, The Morning After The Night Before
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:42:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25652278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LogicGunn/pseuds/LogicGunn
Summary: He didn’t see it coming, this affection for another man.
Relationships: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Series: The Long Dark [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1583821
Comments: 22
Kudos: 75





	The Morning After

Rodney wakes with the twilight – a dull, blueish glow seeping in between the shutters and piercing through the thin, burlap coffee sacks that they’ve taken to using as curtains. It’s quiet and still but for the soft wheezes of a slumbering John and resting Miska, the latter having hopped onto the bed in the night and draped herself across their cold feet. It’s become something of a habit; no matter how many times they try to get her to jump up when they’re awake, she refuses point blank to come up onto the bed, lying steadfast on the bearskin rug on the floor and ignoring their directions. But in the middle of the night, when they’re both fast asleep, she manages to relocate so stealthily that it’s not until the morning when they wake up that they realise she’s done it. John jokes that she’s doing it to be contrary, like a rebellious child who wants a hug but doesn’t want to ask for it. Secretly Rodney agrees with that assessment, but outwardly he claims that she’s only seeking the heat from their bodies (never mind that it’s always their feet that she lies across, and the only ones getting warmed up are himself and John).

This particular morning, Rodney’s grateful to have woken up first. Last night’s lovemaking feels monumental in the cold, pre-dawn light, and he feels grateful and blessed and (god help him) positively sentimental in equal amounts, but he really needs some time alone this morning to get his bearings and sort through the clutter in his mind. Thankful that John’s taken to sleeping in through dawn these past few weeks, Rodney climbs out of bed, apologising softly to Miska when he nudges her awake with the removal of his feet. He whispers her to lie back down as he slides into his slippers but she jumps down off the bed, heedless of his request, and pads down the stairs after him, claws clicking on the wood with each step. The first thing that Rodney does is refuel the fire with logs that they chopped yesterday, and it brings to mind John’s shameless flirting as he swung the axe that lead up to last night’s events, the way he was blatantly showing off his manly prowess, stripping down to his t-shirt in the sub-zero temperatures to give Rodney an eyeful of bulging biceps and strong shoulders, the slight softness around his middle that Rodney's grown to love.

He didn’t see it coming, this affection for another man. Never in his life did he harbour illicit thoughts about anyone that wasn’t female, and from what John’s told him, neither did he. A part of Rodney wonders if it was a wasted opportunity, but another, louder, part of him rejects that kind of notion as nonsense. Yes, John’s an anomaly, an aberration in the story of his love life, but he knows, deep down in his gut he _knows,_ that he’d have fallen hard for him no matter what. That even if he made it safely to Thule, where he’d have had to dedicate his entire being to fixing Carter’s mess, he’d still have grown close to John, would have made a move on him over a pizza and a beer if John hadn’t made a move first. (He probably would have made an ass of it, but John’s a forgiving and patient man.) John’s smarter than he lets on and positively beautiful to behold, though Rodney baulks at the thought of actually saying that out loud – John would roll around on the floor with laughter if he did. It’s that astronomical attractiveness that made him do it, made him fumble with an armful of logs and blurt out _we should fuck,_ right there in the middle of the afternoon when they were outside chopping wood on the snowy ground out back. John had paused, arms up above his head and axe hanging down his back, and looked at Rodney utterly blank-faced. For a moment Rodney thought he’d crossed a line, that maybe John had stocked up on the thirteen boxes of silicone lubricant for some reason other than fucking and he was horrified by Rodney’s outburst, but he smiled softly and said _yeah,_ then swung the axe up over his head and down through the log in front of him, and that had been the end of the discussion.

Rodney swaps his slippers for his boots and pulls on a jacket before he opens the door and lets Miska rush off outside. He gathers a pan of snow from out back and sets it up to melt on the stove next to a hissing pan of purified water, then heads back out to wait for Miska to come flying down the hill, sliding his hands in his pockets to keep them warm. He left his gloves on the dresser upstairs, where they are waiting patiently for a tear to be sewn shut, and he doesn’t want to risk going up for them and waking John. Not quite yet. Not until he’s slotted all of last night’s pieces back into place. After dinner, Rodney had showered, thoroughly, and waited for John in bed, who was feeding the crows their leftovers. He was oh so nervous about what they were about to do; having never gotten that far with Jennifer, all he had to fall back on was his research, and no amount of reading can make up for a lack in practical experience. Still, there’s a first time for everything, and between the two of them, Rodney was certain they’d figure it out. When John had finally come up stars, naked and tentative, Rodney reached for him, breath catching in his throat and a tremble in his hands belaying his apprehension, but knowing he was safe with John, that no matter what they would both be okay.

What followed was one of the most tender and erotic moments of his life. John had handled him with care and devotion, stretched him out with mouth and hands, held him close as they moved together, and he had no idea that he could feel like that, so much love and pleasure mixed together in one act. It is one of many unexpected things he’s experienced since they were stranded here on this island, and it’s left him breathless with emotion. If he had to write a list of all the sexual relationships he’s had with other people it would fill a post-it note (in large script), but if he was to list them in order of...well, any positive attribute, really...being with John would be at the top of each one by a large margin. He’s not sure if that makes him more gay than straight, but he suspects that John’s gender is the least of it. There’s a meeting of the minds, an easy understanding between them that he’s never managed to sustain with anyone else. It’s as though someone took the worst in him and made it the best in John and vice versa. They are so well matched in so many ways that...god...he isn’t _glad_ for the events that stranded them here, never that, but he’s glad that they were pushed together (by chance, not fate; he’s not inclined to believe in destiny or any kind of grand design). He’s starting to lose his mind if he’s honest, gaining an understanding of terms like _soul mate_ and _the one_ and _beloved._ He won’t tell John, of course. Like his beauty, it’s something that should remain unspoken and unacknowledged.

“Penny for them?” comes John’s voice from behind. 

Rodney turns to look at him where he leans in the doorway. “Hmm?” 

“Your thoughts?” 

“Oh, I just...nothing really.” Rodney turns back to the horizon. “I was just watching the sky.” 

“Hmm.” John’s arms snake around Rodney's waist from behind. “S’cold out here. Come back inside.” 

“But Miska-” 

“She’ll bark when she wants in. C’mon.” 

John tugs at Rodney’s hand and he follows him back into the warm cabin where the smell of coffee awaits. He pours them each a cup and they sit down on their chairs at the counter. When Rodney reaches for his hand, John smiles and intertwines their fingers. 

“Something on your mind?” he asks. 

Rodney doesn't really know how to answer that. "I just...I love you.” 

“I love you too.” 

“No, I mean, I really love you.” 

“I know.” 

“Last night was...” 

“I know that too.” 

“I-I’m just...” 

“Me too.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Okay. Good.” 

As far as non-conversations go, that was relatively painless, and Rodney believes John when he says he knows. Content that there’s nothing else to say, they watch each other over the tops of their coffee cups and wait in the light of the stove for Miska to scratch at the door. 


End file.
